Make cancer treatment a priority – Asian governments urged

MANILA, Philippines — Governments in Asia should make the fight against cancer a priority with the disease seen to pose a long-term challenge to the region’s healthcare systems and affect the economy, according to a health economist.

In the latest blog of the Asian Development Bank, Thomas Hofmarcher, health economist at The Swedish Institute for Health Economics, said there is an urgent need to address the growing demands for cancer care in Asia.

“Compared to COVID-19, cancer is a long-term challenge for healthcare systems. No lockdowns can stop or slow the emergence of cancer incidences,” he said.

He said the number of new cancer cases in Asia rose to 9.5 million in 2020 from 4.9 million in 2002.

Citing projections by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, he said 15.1 million new cancer cases are expected every year until 2040.

Due to underfunded healthcare systems and lack of universal health coverage, he also said only around 28 to 40 in every 100 new cancer patients survive in developing countries in Asia.

“There is a massive gap in annual investment in public healthcare, with investment of less than $100 per capita in countries such as India, Indonesia, the Philippines, and Vietnam compared to more than $3,500 per capita in Japan,” he said.

He said cancer patients in many countries in Asia not only have poor access and quality of healthcare, which reduce their hope of survival, but also face financial burden.

“As many as half of all cancer patients and their households in Southeast Asian countries face financial catastrophe from high out-of-pocket medical bills and related expenditures in their first year after cancer diagnosis,” he said.

He said cancer cases also affect the economy through loss of productivity.

“Premature death, sick leave, and the early retirement of cancer patients, who otherwise would have been working, represent a productivity loss to the economy. Family members who must stay at home and care for the cancer patient instead of pursuing their regular work are another source of loss to the economy,” he said.

According to the Philippine Statistics Authority, cancer is the third leading cause of death in the country, accounting for 42,497 recorded cases in the January to September period of last year.

Last week, the National Economic and Development Authority Board approved the University of the Philippines - Philippine General Hospital Cancer Center public-private partnership project, which would involve the private sector building the facility with a capacity of 300 beds within the PGH Compound, with half or 150 of the beds for charity and the balance to be allocated for paying patients.

For Hofmarcher, cancer medicines can play an important role in meeting the growing demands for cancer care by prioritizing the inclusion of truly innovative medicines in national formularies to bring significant impact on patients even with limited health resources.

He also said governments could get potential savings by encouraging competition between pharmaceutical producers.

“Generic brand competition and stricter price control of originator medicines after patent expiry could create considerable budget headroom for governments. A published estimation of a basket of cancer medicines with generic brands points to savings opportunities of around three percent to 20 percent of total cancer medicine expenditure in Asia and the Pacific region,” he said.

He said the savings could be re-channeled to fund and list innovative medicines.